What was claimed
The average house price was £84,000 in 2000 and is £296,000 in 2026.
Our verdict
According to the government’s House Price Index, in January 2000 the average house price was £78,000. In November 2025, the most recent month we have data for, it was £271,000. Other sources offer estimates closer to those in the posts, however.
What was claimed
A Freddo chocolate bar cost 10p in 2000 and is now 35p.
Our verdict
Correct, though some retailers currently sell Freddos for more than 35p.
What was claimed
A pint was £1.90 in 2000 and is now £5.50.
Our verdict
This may be based on data that is not comparable. The comparable data we have shows the average price of a pint was £1.95 in January 2000 and was £4.83 in January 2025.
What was claimed
Energy cost £300 a year in 2000 and is now £2,200 a year.
Our verdict
The 2000 figure appears to be based on the price of only electricity or gas, and not a dual fuel bill. The figure for 2000 appears too low for average domestic energy bills in 2000, and the other figure too high for average bills in 2025.
What was claimed
Salaries were £18,500 in 2000 and are now £35,000.
Our verdict
The median salary for all employees in 2000 was £15,800 and was £32,890 in 2025, while the median salary for full time employees was £18,848 in 2000 and was £39,039 in 2025 (though methodology changes means these figures aren’t directly comparable).
Posts being shared on Instagram have made several comparisons between the prices of certain things, including house prices, energy bills and the cost of a pint, in the UK in 2000 compared to 2026.
The posts, which we’ve also seen shared on TikTok and YouTube, claim the average house price was £84,000 in 2000 and is £296,000 in 2026, that a Freddo chocolate bar cost 10p but is now 35p, a pint was £1.90 and is now £5.50, energy was £300 a year and is now £2,200 a year, and that salaries were £18,500 in 2000 and are now £35,000.
While some of these figures are broadly correct, others don’t appear accurate based on official data, and many of the comparisons are based on figures that aren’t directly comparable.
It’s worth noting that while the posts specifically reference costs in 2026, in most cases we don’t have relevant data for this year yet, so when fact checking these figures we’ve used the most recent available data.
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The posts claim the average house price was £84,000 in 2000 and is £296,000 in 2026. While the figure for 2000 is broadly correct, we don’t yet have data for house prices in 2026, and the average house price in the UK was lower than £296,000 in the most recent month we have official government data for.
According to the Land Registry’s House Price Index, which publishes monthly house price data, in January 2000 the average UK house price was £77,950. The average price rose to £86,244 by the end of that year, but the average of the monthly figures across 2000 was £82,534—slightly less than the post suggests.
We don’t yet have data for the average house price in 2026, but in November 2025—the most recent month for which we have data—the average house price was £271,188.
It’s possible the £296,000 figure used in the post is based on the original House Price Index estimate for October 2022—however this has since been revised considerably to £265,693.
It’s also worth noting that although the government’s latest figures don’t match the figure referenced in the posts, other sources may be closer. For example, the Halifax House Price Index which doesn’t include cash transactions and is based on Halifax mortgage applications at the approval stage, said the average house price in December 2025 was £297,755, and around £84,000 in June 2000.
The posts accurately state that Freddo chocolate bars cost 10p in 2000. It claims a Freddo now costs 35p, which appears right when looking at some retailers, but it is more expensive at others.
They also claim that a pint cost £1.90 in 2000, compared to £5.50 in 2026.
This is close to the actual price in 2000—according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS)—which was £1.95 in January of that year, or £2.00 on average over the entire year.
The ONS’s data only goes up to January 2025, when the average price was £4.83.
It’s possible the £5.50 figure is based on a report published by fintech comparison company Finder, which found the average price of a pint in the UK was £5.50 in February 2025, based on analysis of data from two cost-of-living data websites. If that’s the case, this figure isn’t directly comparable with the figure for the year 2000.
The price of energy in 2000 is claimed to have been £300 a year, and the price of energy in 2026 is claimed to be £2,200 a year. This appears to understate the average cost in 2000 and overstate current average costs, and the posts appear to have only considered the annual cost of gas or electricity individually in 2000, rather than the price of both together.
In 2000, the government estimated average annual electricity bills (in cash terms) for domestic consumers were £245 for those paying by direct debit, while average annual gas bills for domestic consumers in Great Britain were £264.
In a newer series of data releases, government figures suggest average annual electricity bills for domestic consumers paying by direct debit for 2025 were £1,059, while average annual gas bills were £825.
Data from 2000 and 2025 may not be directly comparable, however, due to changes in data collection and presentation over the last 25 years.
It’s possible the post was referring to the energy price cap, which is set by the energy regulator Ofgem and limits the maximum amount energy suppliers can charge per unit of electricity and gas. While this is currently £1,758 per year (for a typical household with a dual fuel bill paying by direct debit)—£500 less than the post claims—the energy price cap was £2,200 during some of 2023. The energy price cap was introduced in 2019, so we don’t have comparable figures for 2000.
Energy prices in the UK increased substantially following the end of Covid-19 lockdowns in 2021 and the Russian invasion of Ukraine in early 2022, though they’ve since fallen.
Households on variable tariffs or who pay by standard credit may pay more for their energy than a household on a fixed-rate tariff paying by direct debit, and it’s also worth noting that the energy price cap is based on the consumption of a typical household—it’s not the maximum any household can be charged.
This means that it is possible some households could pay as much as the posts claim, but the figures are not representative of average energy costs for households.
The final comparison the post makes is about earnings. It claims salaries were £18,500 in 2000 and are now £35,000.
According to the ONS’s Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, in 2000 the median salary for all employees was £15,800, while it was £32,890 in 2025 (we don’t yet have any data for earnings in 2026). For full-time employees, it was £18,848 in 2000 and £39,039 in 2025 (it’s worth noting that due to a number of methodology changes over the years, however, the ONS warns long-term figures aren’t directly comparable).
The posts finish by claiming “Costs went up 300%” between 2000 and 2026, and “Salaries went up 90%”. The figures used in the posts do show a 90% increase in salaries, while the average increase across the prices listed was 330%, which is possibly where the 300% figure comes from. But, as we’ve said, not all the figures used in these calculations are based on official data or are directly comparable.
Looking at the best available figures (though as we have said even these may not all be completely comparable) the average house price increased by about 250% between January 2000 and November 2025. The increase in the price of Freddos is at least 250% (though this can be higher depending on the supermarket), while more comparable data suggests the average price of a pint increased by around 150% by January 2025.
And when it comes to salaries, annual earnings for both full-time and all employees increased by nearly 110%, while it appears that annual electricity bills (for those paying by direct debit) increased by 330% while gas bills increased by 210%.
This article is part of our work fact checking potentially false pictures, videos and stories on Facebook. You can read more about this—and find out how to report Facebook content—here. For the purposes of that scheme, we’ve rated this claim as missing context because the posts understate the cost of energy in 2000 and current median salaries, and overstate house prices and the cost of energy in 2026.
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